A Nigerian lawyer, identified as Atanda, has sparked discussions online after sharing guidance on what to do if someone attempts to use the police to collect a debt.

Taking to his Facebook page, Atanda clarified that owing someone money does not give them the legal right to involve the police in collecting the debt.

He explained that debt is a civil matter, not a criminal offense, and that the police are prohibited from acting as debt collectors.

The lawyer advised that if a police officer attempts to make such an arrest, the individual should calmly inform the officer that the matter is civil and request to see their identification.

If the officer insists on proceeding, he stressed the importance of complying without resistance and following lawful instructions.

Atanda also noted that signing any repayment undertaking requested by the officer does not make it enforceable in court, so there is no cause for fear.

After release, victims are encouraged to pursue legal action against both the creditor and the police officer for breach of fundamental human rights and unlawful detention, with potential claims for damages of up to 50 million Naira.

He wrote:

“You are owing someone money and the person brought Police to arr£st you, this is what you should do.

At first, the police have no legal authority to arr£st you for a simple debt, as it is a civil matter and not a criminal offense. According to the Police Act 2020 and the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), the police are strictly prohibited from interfering in civil disputes or acting as d£bt collectors

Meaning that, the Police officer the person brought to arr£st you, is on ill£gal duty and is on a mission to perform ill£gal arr£st.

So at this point.

1. Ask the Police officer for his ID and take note of his name
2. Calmly tell the officer it’s a civil matter
3. If the officer insist on arr£sting you, don’t resist the arr£st. Follow him
4. If they ask you to sign any undertaking of when you will pay back, sign it

That undertaking is not enf0rceable anywhere, so no f£ar at all

Once you are out

File a suit against the person you owe and the Police Officer for breach of your fundamental human right and ill£gal arr£st with unlawful detention

In the suit, demand for damages of 50 Million Naira

Ignorance of the law is no excuse”

See below;

The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation has explained why staff of the Federal Ministry of Steel Development and four other federal agencies have not received their February 2026 salaries.

The delay is due to gaps in the budget allocated for personnel costs in these organizations.

A statement issued by the Director of Press and Public Relations at the Accountant-General’s office, Bawa Mokwa, confirmed that the affected agencies include the Federal Ministry of Steel Development, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, the National Rural Electrification Agency, Kamuku National Park, and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria.

The shortfall in allocated funds caused the hold-up in salary payments.

The office said the affected organisations have been asked to work with the Cash Management Office of the Federal Ministry of Finance to address the funding gaps.

Salaries for other federal workers outside these agencies have already been paid, the statement added.

The statement also addressed civil servants with salary accounts at Standard Chartered Bank, explaining that some could not access their funds because the bank requires a minimum account balance of seven million naira.

Despite the policy, the salaries were fully transferred to the bank.

The Accountant-General’s office assured workers that steps are being taken to resolve the delays and ensure payments are made promptly.

The 2026 federal budget sets aside about N8.36 trillion for personnel costs, with additional provisions for pensions and gratuities, reflecting the government’s planned spending on staff-related costs.

BBNaija star, Saskay, has berated the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, for failing to issue any statement as it regards the k1lling of three Commanding officers during a battle with terrorists.

Dailytrust reports that in the last seven days, the Nigerian military lost three commanding officers in charge of forward operations bases following attacks by Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) at different locations in Borno State. According to reports, the three commanding officers recently k!lled were Major U.I. Mairiga, who headed the Mayenti base; Lt-Col Umar Faruq, commander of the Kukawa base and the 101 Brigade; and Lt-Col S.I. Iliyasu, who served in Konduga.

Findings showed that most of the de@ths occurred during attacks on military bases or ambushes carried out by insurgents during clearance operations.

As some Nigerians took to social media to mourn the gallant soldiers who paid the supreme price while fighting the terrorists, the Minister on Monday evening, March 9, took to his X handle to celebrate the defection of Zamfara state governor, Dauda Lawal., to his party, APC.

Saskay in a post shared on X, called out Matawalle for not issuing a statement on the de@th of the soldiers in his capacity as Minister of State for Defence but deemed it feat to issue a statement celebrating the governor’s defection to his party, APC.